good morning. secret weapon, the white house announces michelle obama will hit the campaign trail to help democrats keep control of congress. while on the republican side, a brewing battle in alaska where incumbent senator lisa murkowski is being criticized by her own party for starting a write-in campaign. safety risk? the only birth control patch available for women may be linked to blood clots. is ortho evra too dangerous to be sold? and paris hilton denied entry into japan. we'll tell you why that country has sent her packing "today,"

we'll tell you why that country has sent her packing "today," wednesday, september 22, 2010. captions paid for by nbc-universal television >> and good morning. welcome to "today" on a wednesday morning. i'm matt lauer. >> and i'm meredith viera. things are heating up for both parties with the midterms fast approaching. >> michelle obama will use her popularity and influence in six state where is democratic candidates are in trouble. this as lisa murkowski is being accused of trying to split up the republican party in alaska by starting a write-in campaign for her senate seat. we're going to have more on all of this coming up in just a couple of minutes. talking about controversy, that custody battle between mel gibson and his estranged

girlfriend. the actor apologized for his behavior in those intimate phone conversations. so why is so much of their dirty laundry being aired so publicly and is oksana behind it all? this morning their attorneys speak out in an exclusive live interview. and that british girl who just won the title of america's perfect teen. how do her fellow contestants feel about that? we're going to talk to her when she joining us from wales in a live interview. >> reporter: the president can be particularly effective raising money for democrats and he'll do that again "today," but democrats will now pass the popularity of the first lady for the first time since the 2008 campaign. it's a season where every issue and every personality comes down to politics.

soon adding her voice to midterm politics -- >> thank you! >> reporter: the white house announced tuesday that michelle obama will campaign in six states, where several senate democrats are in trouble. >> i think she will go out and make a forceful and positive case for what this administration has done. >> reporter: tuesday, senate democrats tried and failed to deliver on two issues that motivate liberal voters, ending the don't ask, don't tell policy. >> we have got thousands of americans who are patriotic who want to serve and who happen to be gay or lesbian and we're telling them you can't. >> reporter: democrats also tried to pass a narrow immigration reform, where children brought her illegally could qualify for green cards by completing education. >> one can only draw the conclusion that this is all about elections. >> reporter: democrats tied both gays in the military and

immigration to a big military spending package. but republicans called it a ploy. >> a transparent attempt to show their special interest groups that they haven't forgotten about them ahead of the election. >> reporter: and voted no. >> the motion is not agreed to. >> reporter: disappointed, democrat al franken choked up with emotion, remembering troops he entertained as a comedian. >> and i'll also have this from doing u.s.o. tours seeing soldiers with their arms around each other and crying. >> reporter: in those u.s.o. tours, franken used humor to protest don't ask don't tell. the same goes politics makes strange bed foal lows, that's al franken in the '90s on the same television show with christine o'donnell. o'donnell appeared on fox news tuesday night saying she would talk issues and try to avoid

more controversy. >> i'm not going to do anymore national media because this is my focus, delaware is any focus. >> reporter: that she says, is advice given to her by sarah palin, who released a new video tribute to the tea party and notably, palin never used the word republican. >> this party that we call the tea party is the future of politics and i am proud to get to be here "today." >> reporter: and former president bill clinton is giving advice to democrats as well telling them not to get caught up in all of the tea party attention and to recognize the anger that those sorts of candidates are tapping into among voters and also "today," vice president biden, he's campaigning too working on behalf of blanch lincoln of arkansas who's one of those democrats considered to be very vulnerable this year. it is 7:05 and here's matt. >> now to a big battle brewing in alaska. incumbent senator lisa murkowski

recently lost the republican primary there but she's not going away quietly. she's launched a write-in cam pain and that's infuriated some of her fellow republicans. nbc's lee cowan is in anchorage with the latest. lee good morning to you. >> reporter: yeah, a lot of senator murkowski's colleagues not only in washington but among the party as a whole including those here in alaska are really frustrated by the fact that she's continuing to push this write in campaign. murkowski insists that it was her backer who is wanted her to give this one more shot. it's just before dawn at the local diner in anchorage and just as a fresh pot of coffee is being brewed, embattled senator lisa murkowski is brewing a fresh campaign. alaska's senate race was turned on its head when murkowski lost the gop primaries to a lawyer named joe miller, a tea party

favorite. miller's victory should have been the nail in murkowski's incumbency, it wasn't. she stunned her vo. >> they tell me you cannot do it. alaskans can't figure out how to fill in an oval and spell m-u-r-k-o-w-s-k-y. >> a write in candidate who some republican leaders are now characterizing as a sore loser. >> i'm more concerned about what the people of alaska are saying about me as opposed to what they're saying back in washington, d.c. as far as i know, not too many of them back there can actually vote. >> reporter: most agree she's got an uphill battle and then some. >> how do you tell the voters,

you made a mistake, you were wrong, you missed it the first time, you got to get it the second time, and you got to spell my name right or some semblance of it while you're at it. >> reporter: a staunch republican says he's not worried about murkowski. >> basically we have to make a move toward -- >> reporter: he's a yale and west point grad who campaigned on a platform to phase out medica medicaid. >> it's not just that we're broken fiscally, but it's also this concept that the federal government has gotten far beyond what was intended. >> reporter: he was buoyed by more than $500,000 from the tea party express. the former alaska governor beat murkowski's own father in 1976. >> the tea party coming in, the

california-based group setting their sights on me saying i'm not republican enough for them, i do believe that they influenced the outcome of this primary election in a substantive way. >> reporter: now she says the gloves are off, miller says he's ready. now still, matt, there are a lot of people here who say that murkowski does have a shot here, she's got a lot of money, she's only got about six weeks left to spend it and she still has one of the most recognizable names in alaska politics. >> senator lisa murkowski is also in anchorage this morning, senator, thanks for waking up this morning, good morning. >> you bet, thank you, matt. >> when i read the books on politics, the system works like this, candidate loses primary, candidate endorses winner in primary, candidate endorses the other candidate and then candidate rides off into the

sunset, you read a different book, apparently. >> we're writing the book at this point in time. i'll tell you, what is going on here in alaska is about providing -- providing alaskans a choice in this election. i did not prevail in that primary. but what happened after that primary was absolutely an uprising, from the people of the state of alaska saying, lisa, you cannot end this, please stay in this fight, please give us a choice. it was an outpouring from thousands of alaskans, from all over the state. >> but senator, all candidates have -- >> what do you do? >> all candidates have staunch backers, but the people of alaska spoke a couple of weeks ago, you gave them a choice and they made a choice and they went with a political outsider named joe miller. >> and in fairness, 85% of the alaskan electorate did not have an opportunity to participate in

that. so what i am doing is responding to their request, please give us a choice, give us a voice to guide alaska into the future. so this is a tough call, absolutely, it's not been done since john thurmon in 1954. >> right. >> but what i'm doing here, what i'm doing is trying to respond to the people of the state of alaska. >> what you're doing also is raising the anger of a lot of republicans, senator. karl rove says this one is, quote, sad and sorry. jim demeant says you've put your only personal interests ahead of everything else. and they're proposing to strip you of your leadership role on the energy committee. how do you respond to their words and their actions. >> what i am doing is i am putting my state, the state of alaska before my party. and in today's political world,

that's practically unheard of. people can't believe that i would do this, that i would make this effort, make this push, why don't i just fade quietly into the sunset, as you say? i'm doing it because the people of alaska have asked me to do so. i'm putting everything on the line to do it. >> let me ask you to look beyond alaska for a second. this strategy is tough to succeed with, it's also risky for your party. so would you suggest that a mike castle in delaware or a tre grayson in kentucky do the same thing? should they run as write-in candidates and risk splitting their party? >> i don't know what the mindset is in delaware or kentucky amongst the electorate. i can only be responsive to the people that i represent here. when you have -- again, when you have thousands of people stand up and say please give us this opportunity, when you've got 4,000 people sign on to a facebook page in a matter of a week who are saying, please give us this chance, i don't -- i'm

not going to advise mike castle or tray grayson, i'm listening to alaskans and i'm putting alaska first, it's as simple as that. and it's difficult for the political insiders to understand that. what would motivate somebody like myself who's got a political future out there to put it all on the line for the people that she represents? it's really about who i represent and who i am. >> and we'll see how it all shakes out. thanks for getting up earlier, i appreciate it. >> i want to make a special shoutout because we're really proud here in alaska of melissa and jeremy, jeremy is actually stationed here as one of our airmen in airmen. >> senator murkowski, thanks. >> now let's get a check of the the rest of the morning's top stories from tamron hall who's filling in for ann. a new book by bob woodward

is outlining deep divisions at the white house over the war in afghanistan with advisors arguing over the war and some doubting if the president's strategy will work. nbc's chief war correspondent chuck todd joins us, so some big disagreements we're talking about? >> we're hearing about the diplomatic side and the -- the white house is already reacting to the book this morning. senior administration official putting out a fairly lengthy memo about the book, saying these policy divisions were well known at the time, this is the way the president operates, he wants different points of views, he wants a lot of information before he comes to a decision. so in many ways they're downplaying these divisions and saying, nothing to see here. we'll see if there's personnel recriminations down the road. >> another economic advisor is leaving. >> reporter: that's right, larry summers, chairman of the national economic council, he's

now the third member of the president's economic team to announce his departure from the white house in the last 60 days, the budget director has already left, they're trying to get a new one in. the chief economist, she's already out. the way folks are looking at around here, they're trying to find someone from the corporate world who will also not upset labor unions and they would also like a little bit of diversity. so if they could find a woman ceo to replace larry summers. mr. summers is headed back to harvard. the recent salmonella outbreak linked to two outbreaks in iowa. the heads of those two farms have been called to testify. today the u.n. is announcing a global health campaign aimed at saving the lives of 16 million mothers and children worldwide in the next five years. word wide every year, an

estimated 8 million children die before their fifth pirt day. . the fed decided to leave interest rates alone. trish reagan is at the new york stock exchange, what are we watchi ing today. >> watching gold and -- it's all because of what the fed had to say yesterday. basically the fed is saying growth is going to be pretty slow for the foreseeable future. they're even concerned about very low inflation, which of course we all know can lead to deflation where wages and prices go down, a very hard thing to combat. one of the big questions is what can the fed do right now about the economy? and there's actually very little because interest rates are effectively zero, but the fed is making large purchases of u.s. treasury bonds which effectively helps to keep interest rates on everything else very, very low right now. >> this morning, paris hilton was kicked out of japan, she was sent packing two days after she pleaded guilty to a drug charge

in las vegas, japan has strict immigration laws that bar those convicted of drug offenses. and in cambridge, massachusetts, drivers can get upset and relaxed at the same time. parking tickets now come with instructions for yoga. it is 7:17, back to matt, meredith and al. >> that's really going to help. >> here in the city they come with instructions for kung fu.

>> good morning, things are quiet here at home. partly cloudy skies with a chance for a shower or thunderstorm later this afternoon. the bigger story is the change in >> that's your latest weather. there are new details in the tragic death of a police chief's daughter in north carolina. hundreds attended funeral services for 23-year-old valerie hamilton tuesday as the man accused of killing her appeared in a new york state courtroom. good morning, tom. >> reporter: meredith, good morning to you, that man accused of killing valerie hamilton is expected to be brought back here to the charlotte area soon.

the investigation is focusing on several places including the storage facility where hamilton's body was discovered and now more questions about the cause of death. meryl hamilton and his family arrived at the funeral for the law man's daughter behind a police escort. joining them at the church were family, friends and hundreds of law enforcement officers, passing treats lined with purple ribbons, they came to mourn and remember 23-year-old valerie hamilton, the police chief's daughter who wanted to work with children. >> people all over the nation are people that supported the chief. he's a good chief and we have all just been heart broken for him. >> reporter: after a nationwide manhunt, 34-year-old michael neil harvey was arrested monday charged with hamilton's murder. >> we had indications from the county sheriff's office in charlotte, north carolina that the defendant is wanted on charges of murder. >> reporter: the convicted sex

offender with a long history of drug abuse said he would not fight extradition back to north carolina where the investigation of hamilton's murder continues. hamilton's body showed no signs of what they call traditional physical trauma. according to police witnesses hamilton voluntarily left the bar last week with harvey and went to his house where the two used drugs. witnesses say something went wrong and hamilton needed, quote, immediate medical attention but harvey never called for help. instead, investigators say harvey moved hamilton's body and made great efforts to clean up any potential crime scene before he disposed of her body. hamilton's body was found this past weekend in a storage shed. >> i'm telling you what, if you've got kids, you've got daughters, my daughter was perfect and what my daughter did or didn't do or whatever, in these daddies eyes and those mama's eyes my daughter was perfect. >> reporter: among the mo

mourners -- >> we all work for the district attorney's office here, we believe in justice, we fight for justice and we know that valerie will get justice in this case. >> reporter: and investigators are still waiting on toxicology results and also results from a sexual assault examination kit, both will be able to shed more light on what happened to valerie. the volatile custody future against actor mel gibson and his estranged girlfriend oksana. ♪

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just ahead, a popular birth control patch too dangerous to be on the market? we'll tell you about the results of the investigation. >> and jenna hager bush drives a nascar car.

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>> good morning, everyone. time for a check on your morning commute. >> good morning, everyone, still dealing with a west found problem on interstate 70. two right lanes are still closed. right now the traffic is completely jammed up and it will be there for a while, unfortunately. if you are going to be traveling in the city, watch for overturned vehicles. mount vernon is shut down for

the book festival. down to 18 miles per hour on the west side. that is the heaviest delay this morning coming out of the white marsh area. 895 southbound, if you are headed out this morning on the outer loop it is about an 18 minute ride. a quick, live look at traffic on the inner loop, a disabled vehicle in the right lane traffic slowing down again. we will keep you posted on that. meantime switching over to 895, accidents are clear southbound. tony? >> the big story in the weather today is the change in temperature. still 59 degrees in most places, but we will wind up in the 80's

in most places. the last day of summer, but those temperatures are holding on with a chance for thunderstorms late this afternoon and evening. a chance for a thunderstorm in the afternoon. >> be sure to check the bottom of your screen for updated news and traffic throughout the morning. we are back in 25 minutes with our next live update.

7:30 now on this wednesday morning, september 22, 2010. our friends are busy soaking up the last rays of summer, fall officially arrives tonight at 11:09 eastern time. i'm meredith viera alongside matt lauer. and ahead a growing concern over a popular form of birth control. >> nearly 30 million prescriptions have been written for the birth control patch, but does it carry too much risk. we'll hear from a mother who believes the patch is to blame for her daughter's death. and we'll hear what experts are saying about this. also ahead the british teenager at the center of that beauty pageant firestorm after she was crowned america's perfect teen. we'll talk to her live.

and all next week, nbc news will be taking a hard look at education in this country, we're calling it education nation, we'll kick things off monday on "today" with an exclusive interview with president obama. he'll share his thoughts on our nation's schools, what's going wrong and what can be done different. and you can submit your questions to the president on "today" show.com. that's a week long education nation. but we begin this half hour with a bitter fight between mel gibson and his estranged girlfriend. new e-mail surfaced this week in which oksana seemed to forgive the actor for those recorded rants on the telephone. we're going to talk to the lawyers about that in a live interview. >> reporter: the battle between mel gibson and oksana exploded this summer with the release of

those now infamous audiotapes. >> i will make your [ bleep ] life measurable, already? >> reporter: his ex-girlfriend and mother of his younger child, the two are locked in a bitter custity battle. >> what kind of man is that, hitting a woman when she's holding a child in her hands, breaking her teeth why is in the face, what kind of man is that? >> reporter: showing oksana visiting an orphanage in chernobyl, holding and caring for six children. they also show -- a departure from the summer long drama. >> you have evidence on both sides, each side pointing to the other, each side accusing the other of making criminal acts against one another.

>> reporter: gibson's camp has accused oksana's camp of extortion. gibson has tried to keep a low profile but just last week he had this run in from the paparazzi. >> i'm wondering if you hit oksana, do you think you'll ever make a movie in this town? >> you've got a lot of dialogue, don't you? >> reporter: gibson still has the support of some hollywood heavyweights, jody foster said in the october issue of more magazine, when you love a friend, you don't abandon them when they are struggling. >> the d.a.'s option is to file charges against one or the other of them, to dismiss the case or

to do further investigation. >> martin -- two attorneys representing the oksana. martin, i know you're new to the legal team, so i'm going to start with you, daniel, you just released these pictures and video of oksana and you're speaking out on her behalf for the first time, why now. >> because she's a domestic violence victim, she was beaten, she was terrorized and all the media seems to focus on whether she extorted mel gibson, when in fact it's just about money, this has never been about money, what they claim is extortion truthfully are letters that profess her love and caring for him. and this is what happens to domestic violence victims, they're vilified and we're trying to set the record

straight, you have the videos and the pictures that show who she really is. >> did she ever ask for money in exchange for not releasing photos or video. >> anybody who says that is either misinformed or lying just to hurt her, she is simply a violence victim who is being pigeon holed into a false light so that the truth of her allegations and her situation are ignored. >> if she is a violence victim as you say, why haven't you filed a case against mel gibson at this point? what's taking so long? >> i think at this point, the district attorney's office is really in the driver's seat in terms of these charges. they're very serious charges and to just file a lawsuit and fight about money is not the right thing right now. he has to be brought to justice for what he did. and mr. coolly, the district attorney of los angeles is in charge of that and we defer to him at this point. >> let me go back to this whole matter of extortion, mel

gibson's camp from the very beginning claimed that oksana secretly made those tapes in an attempt to extort money from him. she admits that she made the phone calls and she secretly recorded them. she admits she broke the photo of her teeth, the broken veneers, why would she do that? >> anybody who's beaten or threatened has the right to document it to show what happened. otherwise mel gibson is going to be one of the most popular love superstars in the world against this woman. she has a right to prove what happened to her, anyone who says she demanded money in exchange for holding these back is a liar and i dare them to come on the show, show their face on this show or any show and take responsibility for that statement because if they do, they'll pay a price for that. >> is she responsible for either

selling those conversations to radar online or handing them over, leaking them to radar online? >> no, absolutely not. in fact, those are worth probably a million dollars to whoever leaked them and she is broke. so it just did not happen, she would not do it. in fact the evidence will show and we will eventually be able to bring forth proof that she tried to hold back any publicity that would hurt mel gibson because a battered woman will both proct the abuser even as she's been abused. >> who else would have access to that kind of material, the private phone conversations? >> well, many, many people had access and we have very strong suspicions as to where they were leaked from. along with the letters and the e-mails, none of which came from our side whatsoever. but we do think we know who leaked them. what we can do about it, i don't know. marty garvis is the leading

first amendment lawyer in the country, and he's sitting here and i think he knows there's a lot of protection even for the vile act of leaking these materials. >> what do you want the public to know about oksana at this point? >> i think you should know something about her, she's someone who started playing the piano when she was 3 years old. she's a concert concert pianois given a number of concerts over the past three years trying to raise money for the injured children. so this is a woman who has a life of her own, which is not part of the hollywood, which is a part of the life that mel gibson has lived, not someone who's being accurately portrayed as dan pointed out in the media. she's a woman of stature and accomplishment. she's also a songwriter, a composer, which she studied along with piano.

so this is a significant woman who is being as dan put it maligned. >> martin garvis, dan horowitz, thank you for coming on. now let's get a check of the weather from al. >> "today's" weather was brought to you by centrum ultrawomen's multivitt mines. >> and we have got some nice ladies from cornyn, new york. how many kids between you. >> 21. >> 21, wow, they're all at home with a big bowl of captain crunch. thanks for coming down. we have got some stuff going on in the tropics, we have got tropical storm lisa, that's just kind of sitting there, we have got a tropical wave in the caribbean, we're watching that, and we have also got tropical depression georgette, it's going to be moving up by later on thursday into the southwest, already bringing clouds and showers over the next few days.

we're looking at anywhere from one to three inches of rain from parts of colorado on into new mexico. that's >> good morning, everyone. highs >> that's your latest weather. and up next, is the birth control patch too dangerous? what "today's" investigation has uncovered right after this. [ female announcer ] there's complete.

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we're back now at 7:43, and this morning "today" investigates a popular form of berth control that some say is too dangerous. >> it's very scary, we're talking about this, it's the birth control patch and there's growing evidence it's far more risky than the pill, causing strokes and blood clots. in fact we have uncovered it's maker johnson & johnson may have known about the problems for years and yet, they're still selling it "today." >> look at this, it's the birth

control pack, ortho evra. >> reporter: when it first hit the market in 2002 t birth control patch ortho evra was a big hit. "time" magazine called it one of the best inventions of the year. doctors have written nearly 40 million prescriptions for. but as sales surged, so did claims of injury and even death. >> she just sort of collapsed in the doorway. and she was gone instantly. >> reporter: aid debrisiana duffy was a student in college and in perfect health. she had a serious boyfriend and told her mom that she wanted to be responsible so their doctor prescribed ortho evra. >> this is a johnson & johnson product, it's the most trusted brand for baby products so why would i question their berth control patch? >> reporter: but one night in her storm room, adrianna fell to the floor, the girl who had been

the picture of health was dead. her family said that's when they learned the patch may be to blame. in fact more than 2,400 women claim ortho evra hurt them too and lawsuits claimed more than two dozen have died many from blood clots, that's exactly what killed adrianna. now her family like others are sues johnson & johnson. >> how many other young women have to die from using this product before it's off the market? >> reporter: some say what makes the patch too dangerous is the high level of estrogen it delivers, 50% more estrogen than others. when you swallow the pill, it's a quick hit that quickly dissolves in your system. but when you use the patch, estrogen keeps flowing into your bloodstream for an entire week. >> with the patch, it goes up and just sort of stays up and there's no relief of the body of the woman from getting estrogen. >> reporter: and research shows

that can lead to deadly blood clots and strokes. nbc news has obtained private internal documents from johnson & johnson, the maker of the patch that suggests they knew about the risks years ago. according to these patient reports between 2002 and 2004, ortho evra was 12 times more likely to cause strokes and 18 times more likely to cause blood clot than the pill. and there's more, in 2005, this j & j vice president says i have been involved in the safety evaluation of ortho evra since it came on the market. compelling evidence, he says the company ignored, therefore he wrote, it became impossible for me to stay in my position as vp. our "today" investigation also found this lawsuit by another vice president. he's suing johnson & johnson for

unlawful termination after he says he blew the whistle on the patch's dangerously high levels of estrogen, on even before it came to market, the company, he says, disregarded his concerns and launched the product anyway. >> the company knew about much of it if not all of it. they thought correctly that it wouldn't sell as well if you told people how dangerous it was. >> dr. wolf has peated the fda to pull the patch off the market. in the meantime, johnson & johnson continue settling lawsuits quietly. according to bloomberg, the company has paid out an estimated $68 million to victims, a small number compared to the 1$1.6 billion they have made on sales of the patch. >> they're making a significant profit on this product, off the backs of people like adrianna. >> reporter: in 2006, j & j did make changes to the package insert.

>> j & j would say look, we put all of the risks right there on the warning label and it's up to you, the consumer to read it. >> there's nothing in that warning that could help me understand that a patch would kill a healthy young 17-year-old woman. >> reporter: still not everyone is against the patch. we spoke with several doctors who continued to prescribe it. after all, they say, it's fda appro approved, yet the health risks are higher than the pill, but they say, they're still relatively small and worth it to protect women from becoming pregnant. but dr. wolfe says it's not worth it, that ortho evra is not only riskier, but also has a higher dropout rate than the pill and is no better at preventing pregnancy. >> we don't ask -- we think it's quite clear that the risks outweigh the benefits. >> reporter: we wanted to speak with johnson & johnson on

camera, but the company declined our request for an interview. in an e-mail the company also declined to answer any of our questions about the match, citing ongoing litigation. instead j & j says it's regularly disclosed scientific data to the fda, the medical community and the public in a timely manner. and when used according to the fda-approved label, ortho evra is safe and effective. but this mother says the patch killed her daughter and she wants it off the market for good. >> most people that have sued j & j over this have settled with confidential settlement agreements. >> before i take money and know that other young women are going to die from this and other mothers are going to be in my situation, i'm going all the way to trial. i want them accountable for allowing this to happen. >> reporter: we asked the fda why haven't you made a decision yet, two years later, whether to

pull this product off the market? a spokeswoman told us it's a complicated issue that takes time to review. by the way experts say you should never stop using birth control, including the patch, after everything you saw without talking to your doctor. it's 7:50. ahead on a much lighter note, jenna bush hager goes after my record on a nascar track. ♪ i love my grandma. i love you grandma. grandma just makes me happy.

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just ahead the bridesmaid dresses you picked for your wedding couple. >> also the british girl named america's perfect teen. ♪ and i feel like... [ female announcer ] kellogg's wants to make kids happy one tummy at a time. because 9 out of 10 kids don't get the fiber they need, that's why froot loops, apple jacks and corn pops have 3 grams of fiber in every yummy bowl. they're the cereals your kids love and the fiber their tummies love... which makes for a whole lotta happy. froot loops, apple jacks and corn pops, an oh-so-good source of fiber. kellogg's® makes fiber fun.

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>> good morning, everyone. the time is 7:56 and it is time to check on the morning commute. >> hello, stan, here are some of the problems to watch out for. westbound 32 we have an accident blocking the westbound lanes. watch out for that this morning in howard county. watch for more delays on northbound 45, mount airy we are looking at closures and and overturned tractor trailer. new accidents coming in, mount

vernon place shutdown between st. paul and cathedral. does not have any delays on the north side and on self 95 we have drive * down to the fort mchenry. here is a quick, live look at traffic. and we will switch over to a live north of child streak, everything going smoothly. that is the latest, 03 you. -- over to you. >> we were in the 40's yesterday, and now we are in the 60's except along the pennsylvania line. 68 downtown. the forecast today, there is a chance for a thunderstorm late in the day, high temperatures into the mid-80's and it will stay there all the way through

the week. perhaps 90 on friday. >> did you just call me santa? [laughter]

8:00 now on a wednesday morning, it's the 22nd day of september, 2010. so summer hanging on for the next couple of hours. we're going to get into the 80s "toda today and maybe a little bit warmer tomorrow. outside this morning, along with meredith viera and al roker. coming up we're going to talk about this beauty pageant that's making headlines on both sides of the atlantic. >> she's from wales. some wonder how somebody from wales could be america's perfect teen. but she is. we'll talk to her.

also ahead, jenna bush hager is here, she recently jumped behind the wheel in nascar with tony stewart. i understand her only goal was to shatter my record two years ago, which would not be hard. we're going to find out how she did. and today just ahead, your pick for the bridesmaids dresses and we're going to sample the wedding cake. >> tamron hall is filling in while ann is on assignment, she's got the headlines. with his party and his health care reforms under attack by republicans, president obama will mark six months since he signed the patient bill of rights before heading to new york before democratic fund-raisers. on tuesday, the white house announced that the first lady, michelle obama will campaign this fall for senate democrats facing tough election sites. meantime the white house is playing down reports that president obama's national security team is sharply split

over the troop surge strategy in afghanistan. according to "the new york times," a new book by bob woodward details disagreements by top diplomatic and political advisors. eight current and former city officials spent the night in jail after being arrested for misappropriates more than $5 million in city funds, nbc's george lewis has details. george, good morning. >> reporter: good morning, it's been an angry summer. now those officials face serious felony charges. city manager robert rizzo busted at his huntington beach home had been pulling down $500,000 in salary, twice what president obama makes. his total benefits came to about $1.5 million annually.

>> the charges accuse rizzo of being responsible for at least $4.3 million of the city's losses. >> rizzo, one of eight city officials present and former charged with numerous accounts of misappropriating public funds. when police went after mayor oscar hernandez, they had to break down the door of his house with a battering ram. >> this was greed and theft accomplished by deceit and secrecy. >> reporter: the district attorney making it clear he's going after anyone connected with this. >> i would charge my mother if i had evidence against my mother. >> i need the respect of everybody. >> reporter: in july, when people found out about the astronomical salaries the city officials were getting, they stormed city council meetings demanding their resignations. and when news came of the arrests on tuesday, some citizens literally jumped for joy. >> we did it! i'm happy. this is what i was waiting for from the very beginning.

>> we just love the idea of all the city council going to jail in handcuffs. >> reporter: the california attorney general running for governor is suing the bell city officials trying to recover much of the money. >> when you see it, you can smell it. and this stinks to high heaven. >> reporter: today when former city manager rizzo appears in court, the district attorney will ask the judge to set his bail at $3.2 million. los angeles county board of supervise sorriessorries -- the heads of two iowa egg farms are testifying today before congress. investigators have questions about cleanliness at the farms and about evidence of salmonella detected over the past two years. as many as 1,600 people were sickened by the latest outbreak. a rare appearance by

mohammed ali, launching a global peace initiative urging kids to knock out hunger by growing need from around the world. it is 8:05, now let's get another check of the weather from al. >> thank you, tamron. already, say happy birth to your mimaw. >> mom doing a little stage directing. hold on there, kids. these are beautiful young ladies. let's check your weather. columbia, south carolina, wis, 92 degrees. afternoon temperatures will drop, going to be way above normal right here into the northeast and the midwest with temperatures in the 80s and 90s, 90s in the southwest, they're looking at rain, remnants of georgette coming up.

risk of strong storms in the central plains, beautiful in the pacific northwest, 68 and sunny in seattle. still some rip currents in northern new england. showers working their way into western and central new york. >> good morning, everyone. you will see a few clouds this morning but it will stay dry. later this afternoon there is a chance for a thunderstorm in this >> and by the way, let's take another look at tamron and her little sister. >> oh, this is wrong, i'm 40s and you're putting me next to a teenager, that's wrong. >> that's right, because she's your little sister.

>> thanks, al. >> anything i can do to help. >> and when we come back, that young lady was just crowned america's perfect teen. we'll speak to her about her controversial win right after these messages. ,000 miles. it was always... [ laughing ] that seat's not happening without a big miles upcharge. a miles upcharge wasn't part of the deal. was i supposed to go without my wife? [ elevator bell dings ] [ grunting ] haha, that was awkward. so we upgraded to the venture card from capital one. we've had it with the games. [ male announcer ] don't pay miles upcharges. don't play games. get the flight you want with the venture card at capitalone.com. what's in your wallet? with the venture card at capitalone.com. words alone aren't enough.

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back now at 8:10, with fallout over the controversial winner of a beauty pageant in florida. we'll talk to the woman who was crowned america's perfect teen. >> reporter: america's perfect teen lives just across the ocean over there in wales. so what did we have to do to find our shining paragone of teen hood? we're talking about pageants here, so this is very serious stuff. oh, how the american girls tried bringing out all the heavy artillery. the butterfly wings, extraining outside fabrics. >> one young lady brought a live cougar on stage. >> what? >> it's very, very fun and exciting. >> reporter: a live cougar couldn't win this thing?

little did they know, a british invasion was underway, and her revolutionary unbig hair didn't frighten and confuse the other contestants. >> what is your perfect facebook status? >> i don't really have one. . >> reporter: the british accent might have been a sparking red flag, her parents who own a vacation home in florida was about to sweep this thing. >> she had an unusual black cape. >> reporter: even she seemed in disbelief at how easy it was to beat the yank at their own game. >> she came all the from the england a and now she's america's perfect teen. >> director and master of all things fabulous who can be seen on the cable show "little miss perfect" defends her every rain

shown and feather. >> when you say that girl had it, she truly did. >> reporter: the british press has devoured the victory, even dhoe the runner up as graciously accepted that america's perfect teen is a brit. >> she met the qualifications and she was awarded the title. >> reporter: still it inevitably begs the question. >> what's going to become of this nation. >> reporter: so if you listen to that sparkly megacrown, an nisha has won a scholarship here in the u.s. so you may want to keep an eye on her. ho hopefully she won't inspire fake british accents although for

some of them that might be more polite. >> anisha, congratulations. >> thank you very much. good morning, meredith. >> what's been the reaction over you winning america's perfect teen? >> well, it's been quite mixed, i think i have had a lot of media attention, but personally, wise, i don't tend to mix my private live with my pageant life so nobody in school really knows until well today really, what i've been doing, what's been going on. >> there's been a lot of talk by some folks who feel -- irregardless of you or your qualifications in this pageant about america's perfect teen than somebody who is not an american would be allowed to participate. >> i think the pageant is a greet student for so many girls all over the world. >> at the time that you were in

the pageant, at any time did any of the other contestants raise questions about the fact that you're from wales and not from america? >> all the girls were very welcoming, at every pageant i do, they always are, they welcome me and they didn't say anything nasty to me whatsoever. i was having the best week of my life to be honest. >> why do you think there's been in reaction by some people? do you think it's sour grapes? i know your mom does. >> i think any competition, if you don't win, you're always going to feel maybe a little bit disheartened and that can sometimes lead to such comments. but i think that after thinking about it and realizing that what happens, happens, it always leads to better thing in my opinion, while it may lead to not winning, but there's other things around the corner. yes, there were a few comments, but now everyone's welcomed me greatly. >> what sets you apart from the

other girls besides that accent? >> i think it probably was my accent and i think that every girl has something special whether it's because you're outgoing or whether it's because of your personality and i personally believe that my accent did help, or maybe it's my hair cut, but i'm sure i'm what the judges were looking for that day and i tried to bring my full personality and my fierceness to the stage. >> and what's next for you, i know you want among other things this scholarship to study broadcasting in the states, is that something you hope to pursue? >> i'm going to finish my a level in the uk first. >> thank you, anisha. >> thank you very much. and up next, jennifer hager, nascar driver? who was it like to fly around the track at 134 miles an hour? she's going to show us right after this. oh there's tons. french presses, expresso tampers, filters. it can get really complicated.

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i really need the reliability that the corolla provides. i am a bookkeeper, and also a prep chef, so i need to be driving around from place to place. for the initial down payment, i'm six months out from when i get to go in and buy the corolla and get the keys. [ male announcer ] share your toyota story on facebook.com/toyota. we're back now at 8:20 with the need for speed. jenna bush hager travelled to texas for a driving lesson from nascar driver tony stewart. i have to say someone has been strutting around the studio this

morning, jenna, good morning, nice to see you. >> you know, there's nothing as exhilarating or a bit scary as driving tony stewart's race car. and though it wasn't a race, matt might be amazed by what he's about to see, the proof is in the video, i definitely put the pedal to the metal. tony stewart is a two-time nascar champion, a legend on the racetrack, while he competes with white knuckle, heart pounding speed, up to 200 miles an hour. which i thought sounded just great. i have a need for speed. so i joined the tony stewart smoke show in dallas, texas, an annual training event meant for kids where participants learn to drive a race car and they learn from the best. the last race at the texas motor speedway was not his best. he led a nine-car pileup coming out of turn four. my first lesson, a reminder of

the power of concrete. >> it's basically a yard sale, with a lot of spare parts for cheap. >> that's right, there are crashes in nascar, i forgot about that part. >> hi, how are you? >> trackside, tony loads into car number 14, ready to show me how it's done. >> what do i have to do to stay alive in this? >> all you have to do is hold on, and i'll do the rest. >> you promise? >> yes. >> and he did just that. tony hit 165 miles an hour and i felt every bit of it, taking on deep corners, my head knocking against the window. one last time around the track and there's just one word for it. oh, i can breathe. it was very fun. but now it's my turn to take the wheel. >> just a reminder, do not mess up my ride. >> i'm not going to go as fast as you, but i am going to beat

matt lauer. >> oh, there's no doubt, you're going to beat matt lauer. >> tony the tiger? >> yeah. >> will you roar? i can't believe tony's letting me drive his car. you can't easter? don't mess up that ride. i was ready to go. somehow my sweet ride was not. >> push the clutch in. >> the clutch in? >> the clutch. >> push the clutch. okay, pop it. that's good. >> i feel like a race car champion. and i'm firing on all cylinders. >> we're going to die. >> coming around turn four. attorney has another plan. >> okay, slow down.

>> all too soon, the ride ends and i missed the turn from pit road. >> good job! okay, right there. you're all good. >> i'm sorry i missed the southern. not quite the magic finish i imagined, but then came the fantastic news, i clocked in at 134 miles an hour. matt lauer had only gone 123. 134! he's just matt lauer. what part was most frightening? >> the part where i'm tugging on the steering wheel to the right and you're tugging on it to the left. that could have been the most terrifying part. >> i managed to terrify tony stewart, but at least i got us back in one piece.

>> jenna, bush, hager! >> yeah! >> thanks to tony stewart, it looks like i might have a bright future as a nascar driver. or maybe not, tony stewart, annual smoke show benefits the children's charities and the tony stewart foundation and this year he raised more than $200,000 for kids. matt? >> i'm not talking to you either. >> i didn't mean to beat you. i didn't mean to, i thought there was no way i could do it. >> that's just an excuse. i had my kids in the back seat when i drove. >> everybody always pulls out the old kids excuse. >> how many times did you stop for directions around that turn? >> well, obviously i missed the turn. but i will say, my mom said i could only go 55 miles an hour, so i apologize, i'm sorry, mom. >> we're back after your local news.

>> good morning, let's get a final check on your commute. >> still tracking a handful of problems around the area, the latest is coming in southbound 95, fought the volume and delays leading up to the accident. right lanes closed overnight with a tractor-trailer and west found that 92, clearing out with another one northbound 95 at 100. mount vernon place is shut down because of the book festival. heavy delays coming out of the

northeast on the west side dealing with volume relation. 395 is showing the ramp from northbound 95, you will find some stocks in the traffic on 295. that is the latest on the traffic. over to you. >> lots of sunshine out there, big change in the temperatures out there, we will make it all the way into the upper 80's this afternoon. the forecast for the date is a mixture of sunshine in clouds with a chance later in the day between 83 and 88. we will keep that been going to the end of the week, maybe even 90 degrees on friday with a chance for thunderstorms in the afternoon in a few scattered showers over the weekend as well but it is likely to be a washout

with temperatures dropping in the the seven's. >> we will have another update at 8:55. bob ehrlich pretends to be for the working guy... but he's not on our side. i thought i knew bob ehrlich, but then i found out... he raised property taxes on every maryland family... and business. he increased college tuition... by 40%. 40%. and i thought i knew bob ehrlich. he was against raising the minimum wage. made $2.5 million... working for a lobbying firm.

$2.5 million? he's not really on my side. with this tough economy, we really need a governor on our side.

8:39d -- 8:30 now on this wednesday morning, great day to be up and out this morning. we have a great crowd here in rockefeller plaza. we're going to announce the bridesmaid's dresses for melissa and jeremy's wedding. >> mark pittman is in the kitchen right now and he's

making some recipes this morning where he's concentrating on dishes that make you use less meat. there are possibly some things your doctor is not telling you which could affect your results when you go into the office. we'll look at some of those tests and tell you what you should be asking. and "newsweek" recently asked the question, why are his and hers spiking impossiblily good looking? >> the new tv show undercover, 1/2 of that crime fighting couple. i've been reading all the rev w reviews the paper, i don't know if you're looking at them, but they're fantastic. >> and a lot of buzz about the

casting. >> this is what the world looks like in 2010. and tv and movies traditionally have been slow to embrace what's going on. so hopefully we can inspire people to make this a regular and normal occurrence. >> but it's about a lot more than casting, there's more to the show. >> absolutely, there's action, drama, comedy. it's like a new millennium show. >> at the end of the day, it's a love story? >> it's between two people, ex-spies who left the game to become regular people and now they're pulled back into the cia. >> and it's interesting, earlier today al told me i looked like this ms. perfect teen pageant winner. but i don't know. >> big premier, congratulations.

we're pulling for you. >> thanks for having me. >> undercover premiers tonight at 8:00, 7:00 central time right here on nbc. >> look for al. let's get a check of the weather. >> let's check your weather. for today, we got a risk of strong storms, beautiful weather up and down the west coast, east coast not too bad, but we do have a lot of heat through the southeast, tomorrow more heavy rain up through the great lakes, on into the central plains, wet weather in the pacific northwest, sunny, hot through the gulf coast into the mid ohio and mississippi river valleys, >> good morning, everyone.

highs >> and that's your latest weather. eunice kennedy shriver founded the special olympics 42 years ago. this week the family will hold a eunice kennedy shriver day, in support of people with intellectual disabilities. eunice kennedy's nephew, good morning to you. how important is this to you? >> it's important to a lot of people. there's 3.5 million athletes around the world who now participate. there's 170 nations that recognize eunice shriver day,

there's major league baseball, the pac-10 conference, all of them are participating, we need coaches, we need volunteers, we need people who will come and work. this is lewis lopes, these are three proud special olympians. this is a two-time gold medalist from the 2010 china olympics. in softball and walking. and feel how heavy these are. >> you can see the emotion in your face, what it means to you. >> my 14-year-old daughter volunteered last summer and spent the whole summer working. for me, it was the best gift i have ever given her, it teaches us values, it teaches about inclusion, about solidarity, unity. we can't go forward leaving our

brothers and sisters behind. >> how can someone get involved? >> go to www.ceksday.com. that's eunice kennedy shriver day. we're going to see the bridesmaid's dresses and then we're going to sample some wedding cakes. that's next here on "today." old.

today these factories are full of dot com businesses. old. and now my job is helping maryland create new economy jobs. training new math and science teachers investing in our institutions of excellence pioneering new cyber security jobs and giving an old gm plant a jump start building electric motors. i'm barbara mikulski. i approve this message so you'll know i'm fighting for you. staid -- "today's" wedding modern love is brought to you by chevy. every vehicle is backed by a 100,000 mile/5-year power train limited warranty. the big day is next thursday, this morning we are revealing a choice of the

bridesmaid's dresses and sampling the wedding take. melissa mcmillan and jeremy gephart are our bride and groom. eight days away. >> we're so excited. >> you just got back from afghanistan, is this even sinking in for you yet, jeremy? >> it's starting to, but it's all coming way too fast. >> a lot in a short period of time. we're going to reveal the bridesmaids' dresses if you're ready. this is what the bridesmaids and the flower girl will be wearing. i think you recognize this dress. it's being worn by your real maid of honor, alexis longo. are you surprised to see her? >> yes, i'm so excited. i wish i could hug you. >> you can hug her. what do you think of the dresses? >> you look absolutely beautiful

and abby, you look so nice. >> that dress can be used as a dress with sleeves or a halter. >> i'm so excited, you look great. >> you want to stick around and taste some cake? that's what we're going to do now, we're bringing in gail simmons from top chef. >> you're the perfect one to do this because you also have a new show top chef just desserts. >> i love cake. i brought you four choices "today," all very different. you want to taste some cake? they cater to the stars, they're the best and most extraordinary parties all over the country and around the world. they have made you the most beautiful cake here. obviously these colors work perfect. >> but the bridesmaids dresses are beautiful. >> we have four flavors of cake in here. this is a sweet potato with brown sugar.

there's plenty to go around. have a taste of that. i know that you didn't -- you weren't such a fan of chocolate so we're giving you some chocolate. have a taste of that, there's also a vanilla with coffee crunch. >> and each guest will get their own individual cake? >> this beautiful oval cake and 150 individual cakes. so each guest at your wedding will get their own individual cake. >> okay the next cake is maddie austin. she just opened her shop just a little while ago. this cake i find to be so feminine, so romantic. >> and she's very hot right now, isn't she? >> she's like the darling of the wedding blogosphere. she made this cake with cinnamon and hazelnut. >> this represents the state of missouri? she made this out of sugar, this

is all handmade out of sugar and this incredible molding is also something you should look at because the work here is incredible. >> they really are works of art as much as they are cakes. >> the time that goes into this is incredible. >> i don't think we're going to turn down any advice. >> this is margaret vaughn, she's the author of cake walk, she is really an artist, she does incredible hand painting, 24 caret gold leaf on this cake. this is a chocolate cake with carmel crunch. dig in, guys, you can't be shy about this, this is your day. you just see the work on this. it's beautiful, it's really a seasonal cake. it just says autumn. how about that? >> and our last cake. >> this is our last cake, this is anna parsons, she's in

chesshire, connecticut. these flowers are all made from hand gum paste. >> what is gum paste? >> it's a product that really helps in making handmade flowers. she has four different. there's a vanilla cake with strawberry, one with raspberry. and one with apricot. and if you see, there's a little emblem, a little air force emblem which is a shadow to you, jeremy. lots to choose from, all very different, sort of from the classic all the way to the very modern. they are all really works of art. they're amazing pieces made just for you guys. >> and most importantly, they all taste delicious. >> i'm glad you guys don't have to choose, because i don't know how i would. >> i don't know either. >> i have this urge to keep my fingers crossed. thank you so much.

>> thank you so much. >> get ready, because it's really happening. after this, that's it, right? >> and then you find out your honeymoon, but that's on the day of. all right, guys, perfect. all right, thank you all, and to vote for your favorite cake, head to our website todayshow.com, or our facebook page, facebook.com/todayshow. meanwhile, up next, advice on how to eat less meat and enjoy it. tax on everything you buy?

that's in andy harris' unfair tax plan. 23% sales tax. a 23% sales tax will cut my business in half. would be devastating. andy harris' 23% sales tax absolutely makes no sense. 23% sales tax would really make things unaffordable. that's too high for the average american out here. i don't know how we would manage it really. don't like that idea. we can't afford andy harris' idea. i'm frank kratovil and i approve this message. this morning on how to cook everything today, eating your way to better health. americans consume more meat than any other food group, and if

you're trying to cut back while still enjoying the flavor, mark bitman has some great ideas as always. his book, snfd "the food matters cookbook." two pronged, you're going to do something for the environment and also good for your body. >> that's the idea, matt. it's that we don't want to eat meat, we like it, we love it, but we do eat too much. but you can use meat as a flavoring and really get the pleasure at the same time. >> if you cut out meat completely, people get bored, so you're not saying that, you're just saying reduce the amount of meat in recipes and this first one is a good example. instead of beef stu with mushrooms, it's mushroom stew with beef chunks. >> we've got -- you put them in warm water and they soften up

and then you can chop them. we have got leaks, carrots and parsnips. you can use celery, we need a little more garlic. and after these are sauteed a bit. which they will not have by the time i move through the next step, but anyway, after we cook them a little bit, we use that porcini liquid, which has great flavor, great depth. it leaves sometimes little sands at the bottom. some red wine. beef stock. this will cook for an hour, or an hour and a half. >> this is only a half a pound of beef. obviously not not a ton. just let me show you, we're going to use some thyme and bay

leaf in here too. when it comes to time to eat it, what you have essentially is a beef stew, just heavy on the vegetables. >> we'll have a sample in a second. let's take a look at another recipe. this is brown rice and beef burgers. >> i know you're skeptical about this. >> i don't like recipes that make it seem like you're trying to cut meat out of your diet. so does it taste like a burger? >> we have cooked brown rice and, again, only half a pound of beef here. chopped red onion or shallette. it's really salty, it's really, really rich. it's got a big distinctive flavor. and we have got some c oourksum some oregano and flavor.

>> so you cook these in the skillet? >> in the skillet or in the oven, whatever you prefer. >> it looks like you're eating a patty of rice. >> that's just what it looks like. >> the lauer nower. >> it takesdelicious. if think if you're a guy who craves a burger, it may not be that satisfying. >> but the thing is it's delicious. so if your goal -- you're even having another bite. if your goal is to eat a burger that's a half a pound of meat, go right ahead. but if your goal is to eat a burg they're's good for you, here you go. >> what are these? >> these are fajitas, again just hut down on the meat and more and more vegetables. what's beautiful here, is that pineapple with tequila and lime. tremendous flavor.

>> the book is "the food matters cookbook."

bob ehrlich pretends to be for the working guy... but he's not on our side. i thought i knew bob ehrlich, but then i found out... he raised property taxes on every maryland family... and business. he increased college tuition... by 40%. 40%. and i thought i knew bob ehrlich. he was against raising the minimum wage. made $2.5 million... working for a lobbying firm. $2.5 million? he's not really on my side. with this tough economy, we really need a governor on our side.

by now you've been conditioned to know exactly what these two sounds mean. >> he's back for his 12th season and tonight's season premier, a foster child disappears and then reappears and it's up to sbu's detectives to figure out whether it's foul play. >> you keep a file of child molesters? >> i can't go through this again. i can't. >> again? >> our other daughter was abducted ten years ago. >> was that ever resolved? >> no. >> she's still out there, she's still out there. >> chris maloney plays detective elliott. good morning to you. >> i have chills running up and down my spine.

joan cusack is awesome. >> 12 years? >> 12 in the blink of an eye years. >> went by fast? >> until you sit home and maybe catch a marathon and you catch yourself from the first season and you go, i was a young man. who's that skinny good looking one there? in my shoes. >> this went off with a bang, great guest stars and apparently a potential love interest for mariska's character. >> i have no interest in talking. >> come on. >> ian c oourusack from lost. he came on for a two parter this season. that's really interesting. i can't really go into too much detail, but, yes, things get a little steamy, a little dangerous, a little heart breaking and all that stuff. >> how do you go 12 years of playing the same character, when

you sit down there and look at the next season's scripts, how do you change them up to keep them interesting? >> i actually had a discussion with our head writer and i think we all understood, you know, elliott went through a little bit of a rageaholic phase and it's his expression of trying to deal with these crimes that he meets up with every day. and i think you bang your head against the wall and the wall doesn't fall down, you find a new way of dealing with these traumas, so we're trying to find a new way for elliott to move through these days, in a more elegant and mature -- >> he's evolved. >> chris, you're the best. >> you're the best. >> no, you're the best. >> no, no, you. >> 8:00, 9:00 central time. they're both the best.

>> good morning, it is 8:55. here's a look at one of our top stories this morning. days after a triple shooting that left a doctor wounded, the federal police spoke with john hopkins officials yesterday to review their emergency plans. police said that they will meet with them three times each year to reinforce protocols and engage in drills. the commissioner says that his department will also continue to review their own protocols in review their own protocols in the wake of last

>> lets to canada to forecast. >> good morning, everyone. a big change temperature-wise

from yesterday, jumping into the 80's this afternoon, 10 degrees above average. there is a chance for a thunderstorm late this afternoon. the seven they forecast, same thing on thursday and friday, a chance for thunderstorms in the afternoon, cooling off for the weekend with a chance for showers in the picture. high temperatures dropping back into the 70's early next week. >> thank you for joining us, we will have another weather update at 9:25. at 9:25. bob ehrlich pretends to be for the working guy... but he's not on our side. i thought i knew bob ehrlich, but then i found out... he raised property taxes on every maryland family... and business. he increased college tuition... by 40%. 40%. and i thought i knew bob ehrlich. he was against raising the minimum wage. made $2.5 million... working for a lobbying firm. $2.5 million? he's not really on my side. with this tough economy, we really need a governor on our side.

old gibbs canning company. today these factories are full of dot com businesses. and now my job is helping maryland create new economy jobs. training new math and science teachers investing in our institutions of excellence pioneering new cyber security jobs and giving an old gm plant a jump start building electric motors. i'm barbara mikulski.